Federal and local governments continue to invest billions of dollars each year in professional development for teachers. Until recently, there has been little rigorous evidence to inform the design and delivery of these programs. This brief outlines the key findings from three random assignment PD evaluation studies and proposes areas for further research.

The Study of Deeper Learning: Opportunities and Outcomes assessed whether students who attended high schools that focused on deeper learning got more opportunities for deeper learning and whether they had better outcomes than students in comparison high schools. In an updated set of analyses from the study, AIR found that students who attended high schools focused on deeper learning were more likely to enroll in four-year institutions and in college in general than their peers who attended comparison schools.